1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus of rotary head type suitable for use as, for example, a small-size and light-weight video tape recorder or as a small-size and light-weight digital audio tape recorder.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus of rotary head type, which employ a rotary head for conducting helical scanning of a magnetic tape, are widely used as, for example, a home video tape recorders. In recent years, there is an increasing demand for reduction in the size and weight of the apparatus of the kind described, in order to realize a portable type apparatus as in the case of video tape recorder integrated with a camera. On the other hand, the magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus of rotary head type is finding a spreading use, and attempts have been made to use this type of apparatus as a digital audio tape recorder. In this case, it is desired that the apparatus be designed to have a compact construction which will compose with that of ordinary analog audio tape recorders having a stationary head type. Namely, the reduction in the size and weight is the most important requisite for this type of apparatus.
The magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus of rotary head type, however, essentially requires a tape loading mechanism for extracting the magnetic tape from a cassette and for making the extracted tape run around a head cylinder through a predetermined angle. The attempts for reduction in the size and weight have encountered a difficulty due to the necessity for the tape loading mechanism.
Japanese Post-Examination Patent Publication No. 11207/1978, for example, discloses a tape loading mechanism. This mechanism requires a highly complicated arrangement for loading a magnetic tape on a head cylinder in a predetermined positional relationship, as well as a specific driving means for loading the magnetic tape. In consequence, the size of the tape loading mechanism is undesirably increased, thus making it difficult to reduce the size and weight of the magnetic recording and reproducing apparatus.